Drivers lament lack of simple parking

The findings of a new survey have backed up those drivers who say that it is more difficult to park their vehicles than it used to be.

Research by esure looked at the growth in car ownership,the waiting periods for parking permits and increases in parking zones by local authorities.

And the survey found that Borderers are feeling the pinch in more ways than one.

Research shows since 2011 car ownership has grown at twice the rate of residential parking spaces with more than two million extra cars on the road. The effect of this growth on available parking spaces has been exacerbated by the fact that only half (53%) of local authorities have increased the number of parking zones in their area. More than one in 10 (13%) drivers now describe finding parking on their street as ‘difficult’.

Jon Wilshire, chief underwriting officer at esure, said: “Drivers are not imagining it – it really is harder to find a parking spot for your car.”

One of the reasons given for the trend toward declining parking space is that the proportion of households now living in flats has risen from 21% to 23% over the past five years - and with only a third of flats having off-street parking available, cars and vans have been forced into surrounding residential roads.

The squeeze in parking is not only putting up the cost of a residential parking permit across the country, but in some cases leading to more than a nine-year wait to get one. Information obtained by a Freedom of Information request found that Scottish borders Council is one of six bodies that admit residents have had to wait over a year for a parking permit.